Cognitive Distortions

Have you ever struggled with Cognitive Distortions? I bet you have. They are just negative thought patterns that impact how you see yourself and the world. We all experience them at times, especially when we’re feeling down but when we get stuck in these thought patterns, it can contribute to stress, anxiety and depression.

We unknowingly reinforce these automatic beliefs over time and they make us perceive reality inaccurately. They can be subtle so are hard to recognize. They sound accurate and feel rational to you but are not based on facts. That is why they are so damaging: it’s hard to change something if you don’t see it as a problem!

• Identifying these distorted thoughts can help you understand yourself, and others, better.
• Reframing these negative thoughts, can improve your mood, relationships, and quality of life.

We have made a series for students on Canvas of the most common Cognitive Distortions and strategies to overcome them. We can’t control all the events in our lives, but we can work on redirecting these distorted thoughts.